Browse Archive
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Chlorinated Compounds at 'Rocknest'
The first examinations of Martian soil by the Sample Analysis at Mars, or SAM, instrument on NASA's Mars Curiosity rover show no definitive detection of Martian organic molecules at this point. Organi...
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Signs of Perchlorates and Sulfur Containing Compounds
NASA's Mars rover Curiosity has detected sulfur, chlorine, and oxygen compounds in fine grains scooped by the rover at a wind drift site called "Rocknest." The grains were heated and analyzed using th...
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Inspecting Soils Across Mars
This graph compares the elemental composition of typical soils at three landing regions on Mars: Gusev Crater, where NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit traveled; Meridiani Planum, where Mars Explora...
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A Sampling of Martian Soils
This collage shows the variety of soils found at landing sites on Mars. The elemental composition of the typical, reddish soils were investigated by NASA's Viking, Pathfinder and Mars Exploration Rove...
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Windblown Sand from the 'Rocknest' Drift
The Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) on NASA's Mars rover Curiosity acquired close-up views of sands in the "Rocknest" wind drift to document the nature of the material that the rover scooped, sieved and...
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Scoop Marks in the Sand at 'Rocknest'
This is a view of the third (left) and fourth (right) trenches made by the 1.6-inch-wide (4-centimeter-wide) scoop on NASA's Mars rover Curiosity in October 2012. The image was acquired by the Mars Ha...
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Curiosity's 'Rocknest' Workplace
NASA's Curiosity Mars rover documented itself in the context of its work site, an area called "Rocknest Wind Drift," on the 84th Martian day, or sol, of its mission (Oct. 31, 2012). The rover worked a...
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Longer-Term Radiation Variations at Gale Crater
This graphic shows the variation of radiation dose measured by the Radiation Assessment Detector on NASA's Curiosity rover over about 50 sols, or Martian days, on Mars. (On Earth, Sol 10 was Aug. 15 a...
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Curiosity's Eastward View After Sol 100 Drive, Stereo
NASA's Mars rover Curiosity drove 6.2 feet (1.9 meters) during the 100th Martian day, or sol, of the mission (Nov. 16, 2012). The rover used its Navigation Camera after the drive to record the images ...
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Curiosity's Eastward View After Sol 100 Drive
NASA's Mars rover Curiosity drove 6.2 feet (1.9 meters) during the 100th Martian day, or sol, of the mission (Nov. 16, 2012). The rover used its Navigation Camera after the drive to record the images ...
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Post-Drive View on Curiosity's Sol 102
NASA's Mars rover Curiosity drove 83 feet eastward during the 102nd Martian day, or sol, of the mission (Nov. 18, 2012), and used its left navigation camera to record this view ahead at the end of the...
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Daily Cycles of Radiation and Pressure at Gale Crater
This graphic shows the daily variations in Martian radiation and atmospheric pressure as measured by NASA's Curiosity rover. As pressure increases, the total radiation dose decreases. When the atmosph...
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Daily Cycles of Radiation and Pressure at Gale Crater
This graphic shows the daily variations in Martian radiation and atmospheric pressure as measured by NASA's Curiosity rover. As pressure increases, the total radiation dose decreases. When the atmosph...
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Five Bites Into Mars
NASA's Mars rover Curiosity used a mechanism on its robotic arm to dig up five scoopfuls of material from a patch of dusty sand called "Rocknest," producing the five bite-mark pits visible in this ima...
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Thermal Tides at Mars
This diagram illustrates Mars' "thermal tides," a weather phenomenon responsible for large, daily variations in pressure at the Martian surface. Sunlight heats the surface and atmosphere on the day si...
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Pressure Cycles on Mars
This graph shows the atmospheric pressure at the surface of Mars, as measured by the Rover Environmental Monitoring Station on NASA's Curiosity rover. The blue curve shows data from Sol 31 (Sept. 6, 2...
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Mountain Winds at Gale Crater
This graphic shows the pattern of winds predicted to be swirling around and inside Gale Crater, which is where NASA's Curiosity rover landed on Mars. Modeling the winds gives scientists a context for ...
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Signs of a Whirlwind in Gale Crater
Twenty-one times during the first 12 weeks that NASA's Mars rover Curiosity worked on Mars, the rover's Rover Environmental Monitoring Station (REMS) detected brief dips in air pressure that could be ...
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'Whitewater Lake' Rock Viewed by Opportunity
A rind that appears bluish in this false-color view covers portions of the surface of a rock called "Whitewater Lake" in the top half of the view from NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity. This r...
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'Homestake' Vein on 'Cape York,' Color Enhanced
NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity inspected this mineral vein, called "Homestake," in November 2011 at the northern end of the "Cape York" section of Endeavour Crater's western rim. The vein i...
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